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Westbrook sparks OKC in win

By Jeff Latzke

AP Sports Writer

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Russell Westbrook slammed his hand on the scorer’s table in anger. He had been slowing down to call a timeout when rookie Patrick Beverley came careening in to try for a steal and crashed into Westbrook’s knee.

Oklahoma City’s guard shook off the pain and the Thunder withstood a challenge from an energized Houston Rockets team looking to bounce back from a Game 1 blowout.

Westbrook and Kevin Durant scored 29 points apiece, and Oklahoma City recovered after squandering a 15-point, fourth-quarter lead to beat Houston 105-102 on Wednesday night and take a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference first-round series.

“It’s the playoffs,” Westbrook said. “You can’t help it. You can’t help but get excited.”

Oklahoma City’s big lead melted away with nine straight scoreless possessions as the Rockets mixed in a zone defense. James Harden spearheaded a 21-2 Houston comeback by getting into the lane to create his own opportunities, and he also kicked the ball out to set up two 3-pointers by Carlos Delfino. His second 3, from the right wing, provided a 95-91 lead with 3:27 to go.

But the Rockets couldn’t keep it up.

Oklahoma City came back to tie it before Harden knifed to the basket for a layup to give Houston its last lead at 97-95 with 2:42 to play.

Durant answered 14 seconds later with a deep 3 from the left wing, and the Thunder wouldn’t give up the lead again. Oklahoma City came up with back-to-back stops before Thabo Sefolosha’s 3 provided a little breathing room at 101-97.

Chandler Parsons, who went tumbling to the court as Sefolosha shot, said Oklahoma City center Kendrick Perkins prevented him from closing out on the shooter.

Serge Ibaka added a long jumper to make it 103-98 after the Rockets forced Durant to give up the ball. Durant and Kevin Martin, both in the top five in the league in free-throw percentage, both went 1 for 2 at the foul line in the final 12 seconds to give the Rockets one last chance.

Houston didn’t have any timeouts left after Durant’s miss with 1 second left, and Delfino couldn’t connect on a desperation shot at the buzzer.

“It’s frustrating and it hurts really bad right now,” said Parsons, who scored 17.

Game 3 is Saturday night in Houston.

Harden finished with 36 points and 11 rebounds, and Beverley had 16 points, 12 rebounds and six assists for Houston. The Rockets made up for a 40 percent shooting mark with a 57-40 advantage on the boards and a 50-30 scoring edge in the paint, engineering a massive turnaround after getting blown out 120-91 in Game 1.

And they did it without starting point guard Jeremy Lin, who didn’t play in the second half because of a muscle contusion in his chest. Lin said X-rays were negative and he could play in Game 3 if spasms stop.

Beverley moved into the starting lineup as Houston went with a three-guard unit, and it didn’t take long for the rookie to get under Westbrook’s skin with his lunge for the steal.

Later in the half, Beverley knocked Westbrook down on a foul and then reached out to help him up. Westbrook slapped his hand away.

Spurs 102, Lakers 91

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Tony Parker had 28 points and seven assists and San Antonio beat the Los Angeles Lakers 102-91 on Wednesday night to take a 2-0 lead in their first-round playoff series.

Dwight Howard and Steve Blake had 16 points each to lead Los Angeles. Metta World Peace and Pau Gasol added 13 points each, but no other player had more than nine as the Lakers shot 45 percent from the field.

Game 3 is Friday night in Los Angeles.

The Spurs shot 51 percent from the field after shooting 38 percent in Game 1. San Antonio was 7 for 14 on 3-pointers, including 5 for 7 in the first half.

The Lakers shot 37 percent (9 for 24) in the first quarter, a slight improvement over their 7-for-20 performance (35 percent) in the opening quarter of Game 1.

Pacers 113, Hawks 98

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Paul George followed his triple-double by scoring a playoff career-high 27 points to lead Indiana to a 2-0 series lead.

The Pacers have won four straight home games over the Hawks. It’s the first time Indiana has held a 2-0 series lead since the 2004 Eastern Conference semifinals.

George, playing in his first game since being named the league’s Most Improved Player, was 11 of 21 from the field, had eight rebounds, three assists and four steals and again played well defensively. George Hill had 22 points.

Atlanta was led by Devin Harris with 17 points. Jeff Teague and Josh Smith both had 16.